Holly Lynch

Early this year I had the awesome experience of working with two of the brightest and sweetest clients in my Real Estate history. And I had the opportunity to sell them one of the most gorgeous homes in Greenville and the Upstate. But I also learned much from them that benefits all of you as well.

I'll make it brief as most of you, like myself, are high I personalities which means you have the attention span of a flea and love the high pace , personal interaction and relationship of each transaction. Not the numbers so much. Thus was I when I met Georgianna and Dick.

She was a newly retired CEO of a major company in TX and Dick was the same. He was the interpersonal one, she the numbers and information specialist. During our home search Georgianna started asking for numbers. And I didn't have them and didn't know how to answer her questions. I was completely uninformed I'll admit it. Georgianna made me realize how important knowing the details of my market are. I'd heard those figures preached in my team meetings, I just never internalized them: had never had to. This was before the downturn in the market so we were still turnin and burnin ..who needed facts and figures?

Then the market in Greenville took a slight downturn and buyers came from all over expecting a deal. And guess what. I pulled out the Georgianna and Dick lesson book. After all: the way successful people become successful is to model themselves after people who ARE successful. So I got my stuff together, got my figures together (and let me tell you it's a continuing painful process as figures don't' come easily for me) But I know them.

I turned 40 this year and realized I don't want to be selling Real Estate in 15 years! I want to be a Georgianna and Dick: retired early, extremely successful, with a great family that now they have time for, and the lessons of life learned from following a model of success. I hope to stay in touch with them for the rest of my career and thank Georgianna and Dick for teaching this REALTOR a life long lesson!

This is one of my older blogs but I"ve gotten a lot of recent remarks on it so I'm reposting..enjoy!

Ok someone has called off a sign or emailed you with a message that they're interested in buying or selling. Now what.

So many in sales get cold feet at actually having a phone conversation, IE talking WITHOUT the computer. It's very easy in our day and age to let our website give our credentials. But there's so much more that you have to offer than your resume isn't there?

So let's talk rapport. Webster's definition is "establishing common ground". People like to be around people who are like them. So when you call the first time your first call may not be about (or very little about) real estate at all. Get to know them Bring out the similarities with your prospects. Do you have kids and do they? Are they outdoors folks, do they like to read or travel? To them that proves that at least one salesman is not an alien being from another solar system! Keep reading below.....

Try this: Mr. Customer, when I'm not helping people find great homes, I'm a consumer, just like you. I always am on the lookout for good deals at the best prices! I always hope that when I do shop, is that I can find someone who truly understands what it is that I'm buying and can help me make wise decisions along the way. I'd like to earn your trust in that same way by becoming your REALTOR. Blah blah blah..

Too scripty for you? Here's a sample of my patter.

Hi Marge, saw you emailed me about relocating to the Greenville area. What is going on in PA where you are and what brings you this direction?....then I shut up and let them tell me their story. By ACTIVELY LISTENING they will tell me all I need to know. O sure we may have to bring them down to earth about the fact that Greenville, Travelers Rest and the Upstate of SC is not in a crisis situation like many areas of the country and let them know our area is still getting 97% of list price. But after we establish RAPPORT they begin to understand that you're on their side.

Two other quick points that have always worked for me:

1. Did you know that my services to you are free? When you hire me as your REALTOR, I work for you for absolutely nothing. My commission is paid by the seller but my fiduciary (or legal here in the south)duty is to you alone.

2. Mr. Client I just want you to understand something about me as a person as well as a REALTOR. I'm not in this for the money...no really! I love what I do and my favorite thing is handing the keys to a new home over to a happy client. My commission is paid by the seller, but that's gravy compared to the satisfaction I get from watching you move into your new home.

Just be sincere, build rapport from the get go. Dont' be a "sales person", be a friend. You'll double your money if you do so.

Good luck and get selling!

Well I guess because the wording of the actual contract is lawyer talk! In South Carolina and here in Greenville, the Buyer Agency agreement is a 4 page jumble of marbles in the mouths of normal folk and even to most agents.

Explaining it is another issue. And even when it's explained and you find yourself in that scenario, it can really spook a buyer. We love to sell our company listings and help our fellow agents, but the buyers think we're steering or leading because we tell them we're in Duel or Designated Agency. Of course we're not! We just happen to be two seperate agents working in the same office that represent a buyer or seller on the same property and we have to make sure we let everyone know this so that there IS no misrepresentation. It's that simple. Yet it gets misunderstood so often.

I'm going through this scenario right now. I have a listing and another fellow agent in my office brought a buyer and is ready to go. However they were extremely cautious regarding the explanation of Agency. Is Duel and Designated not the same all over? Are other states different. These folks come from Florida. I'd heard that there is some kind of transaction fee instead of Duel or Designated there. Is that the true case FL agents? Is Agency not the same across the board? If not then no wonder our clients can be confused. It's hard enough when the state specific contracts are mind boggling enough. But then if someone sells in another state and comes to South Carolina to buy, our wording is so different.

What is the reasoning behind so many different contracts. Shouldn't Agency be a requirement in all states, and wouldn't it be a dream if all states had the same contract. No wonder they find us shady at times. We have to explain the lawyer talk in layman's terms...and I for one didn't go to law school!

Can't we try to get along>>>LOL

Ok everyone's talking about down markets...Folks there's no such thing as a down market. It's either a buyers market or a sellers market! Ok so this is a buyers market. So if you're looking to buy, you've picked the ideal time. Prices are comparable to 2004! If Wal-Mart can roll back prices well the real estate market has done the same. Mountain and farm properties are especially rocking right now as land prices drop. This is the time to buy a home in the Upstate of SC. Thousands cheaper than NC just minutes away and incredible views and homes with beaucoups of land for extremely reasonable prices. If you're looking in Travelers Rest, Pickens, Sunset, the Cliffs Communities, Taylors or Greer, email me and we'll get you into the next best thing in gorgeous Northern Greenville, SC. Holly Lynch, Keller Williams holly@connierice.com.

Greenville SC, the Upstate and surrounding counties from the beginning of the 20th century made their industry a nation wide name with textiles. Cotton, hemp, you name it. And now a group of SC folks interested in preserving the heritage of the homes created by these mill towns, have started a heritage foundation named the Camperdown Mills Historical Society.

Why is this important to Greenville? Well Camperdown was a huge mill located on the current Reedy Falls Park downtown. When I asked a local why many of the farms and plantation homes from the civil war weren't showcased in Greenville I got a curt answer "Because Sherman burnt them all". So after the war between the states, Greenville and all of SC endeavored to become a force in textiles. Little villages sprung up around the mills and those homes are still in existance today. In fact I've sold two just recently. They just don't build homes like this anymore, with character and pride and history.

Original Camperdown Mill on the Banks of the Reedy River, Greenville SC

I invite you to check out the Camperdown Historical Society's page at: http://camperdownmill.com/default.aspx

I only found out about this group today when at a local Travelers Rest festival celebrating out little burb's 200th birthday, the Camperdown Textile Heritage Band was showcased. These men and women are a perfect recreation of the bands that competed in each little mill village and helped the men and women stay abreast of happenings overseas in WWII. Featuring songs from the 20-30's, the audience was enthralled with the "rags" and standards of that era and many toes were tapping. My three year old was especially fascinated with the "laughing trombone".

A salute to those preserving not only the history of yesterday, but also the homes which we still place clients and are proud to keep part of South Carolina's rich heritage. Let's keep looking toward tomorrow but not forget the lessons of yesterday. And let's share a bit of history from each market. It only enriches us and our children's lives.

I look forward to hearing more about your hometowns.